New experiments reveal a sophisticated posture-control system hidden inside living wood.

Ancient ferns may have helped keep Triassic Europe burning by rapidly regrowing after fires and supplying fresh fuel for the next blaze. Around 201 million years ago, Earth was rocked by the end-Triassic mass extinction. The crisis has been linked to enormous volcanic activity associated with the breakup of Pangea. Those eruptions released huge quantities [...]

Scientists found compounds in a Brazilian tree that hit SARS-CoV-2 on multiple fronts, revealing a promising new lead in the search for COVID-19 treatments. Researchers have found that galloylquinic acids extracted from the leaves of Copaifera lucens Dwyer, a tree native to Brazil and found mainly in the Atlantic Forest, can act against SARS-CoV-2 in [...]

The Galápagos snapdragon, once close to disappearing, is showing encouraging signs of recovery through a long-term partnership between the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galápagos National Park Directorate. For decades, the Galápagos snapdragon was known from little more than a specimen pressed into an herbarium collection. It had been gathered near Caleta Tagus in 1962, [...]

This is a monumental biological network.

Oak trees fight caterpillars by delaying spring just long enough to leave them hungry. In spring, forests usually burst to life right as insects hatch. Caterpillars, in particular, emerge when fresh leaves are young, soft, and packed with nutrients. This timing provides them with an immediate food supply and allows them to begin feeding right [...]